Latest news with #Gero
Condé Nast Traveler
4 days ago
- Health
- Condé Nast Traveler
Soaking in a Slower Pace of Life at Gero Onsen
This is part of Uncovering Japan, a collection of stories that spotlight the lesser known gems that belong on your Japan itinerary, offering everything from a wellspring of local craft and a vibrant street-food culture to traditional wellness. Read more here. From the perennially roiling waves of Kanagawa's seas to Mount Fuji's snow-capped seat in the sky, some of Japan's most iconic natural sights claim their status through their striking appearances. But peer past those wonders, since immortalized odes and ukiyo-e woodblock prints, to find Gero, a quiet onsen town in Gifu prefecture with the placid, pastoral charm of a Studio Ghibli movie. Though the town may not seem like much upon first look, it's part of a celebrated trinity of hot springs dating back to the 17th-century Edo period, when prominent poet Hayashi Razan first dubbed Kusatsu, Arima, and Gero's hot springs the best in the country. Ever since, generations of locals have sought to experience the legendary waters for themselves. Tokyo-based chef, sommelier, and writer Yukari Sakamoto has been making the four-and-a-half hour journey to Gero every year since the '80s. Below, she shares why she comes back time after time to soak in the waters, plus her favorite things to do in Gero, and how she makes the most of her time at the onsen town. Gero Onsen's mountain-nestled main town lights up at night. The town's 13 locally maintained public baths source their water from volcanic origin, particularly from Mount Kusatsu-Shirane. Gifu Prefecture Tourism Federation Gero, the Goldilocks onsen Kusatu, Arima, and Gero all possess distinctive charms that make for three unique onsen experiences. Kusatsu sits in a remote region of Gunma prefecture, a little over 100 miles north of Tokyo. 'It's like, once you're there, you're there, you're in the middle of the wilderness,' says Sakamoto. The town's 13 locally maintained public baths source their water from volcanic origin, particularly from Mount Kusatsu-Shirane. As a result, the springs range from cloudy to clear depending on their acidity and mineral composition, properties which were championed by 19th-century physician to the imperial family Erwin Bälz for their seeming health benefits, ushering in a new wave of popularity for the onsen during the 1800s. Located about an hour's drive to the southeast of Kusatsu, Arima has a far less demanding transit. The onsen is known for its famous duo of golden (kinsen—named after the sienna hue of the iron-rich water) and silver (ginsen—which is actually colorless) waters and being one of the oldest known onsens in the country with a history tracing back at least 1,300 years. 'The onsen is nice, but it's in quite an urban area, so the surroundings aren't quite as bucolic,' says Sakamoto. For an onsen that is conveniently located and immersed in natural scenery, Sakamoto finds that Gero strikes the just-right balance. 'What I love about Gero is that you're in the Japanese Alps,' she says. 'You're located inside a valley with mountains on both sides and a river running between them.' From Tokyo, Gero is just two trains away, with the passage after Nagoya being Sakamoto's particular favorite as rolling hills gradually transition into the mountainside and the river runs parallel. Gero Onsen's public foot bath, right next to the city's main bridge, sees locals stopping daily to soak their feet in the healing waters. Gero's waters leave an inimitable impression. 'We say in Japanese, tsuru tsuru,' Sakamoto says, 'You sit in the water, and after two or three minutes, you start rubbing your skin, and you feel silky. Even after you've gotten out of the onsen and you're dried up, you still feel that silkiness.' The characteristic custard-smooth feeling the water leaves visitors with is owed to its high alkalinity. Sitting around 9.2 on the pH scale, the water takes on a gently exfoliative, soap-like property. Gero's waters leave an inimitable impression. 'We say in Japanese, tsuru tsuru. You sit in the water, and after two or three minutes, you start rubbing your skin, and you feel silky. Even after you've gotten out of the onsen and you're dried up, you still feel [it].' Tokyo-based chef, sommelier, and writer Yukari Sakamoto The joys of taking things slow in Gero The onsen is a nearly year-round destination, though Sakamoto cautions against visiting in the summertime as it gets a bit too hot to fully immerse in a warm onsen experience. 'Once you get to the city, there are many baths where you can take your shoes off, soak your feet,' Sakamoto says, "and there are always the onsens, the hot springs at the ryokan or the hotel that you're staying at, but there's also a public foot bath that's on the river.' Sitting right next to the city's main bridge, she says its part of the area's everyday life to see somebody stop to soak their feet in the waters.
Yahoo
15-02-2025
- Yahoo
Blakely Mardi Gras celebration to support police K-9 program
From ballistic shields to a K-9, the Blakely Borough Crime Watch's annual Mardi Gras Celebration supports the Blakely Police Department each year. 'To see the people from the community come out and back us up considering everything that's gone on in the law enforcement world, it's great to know that the public, our residents of Blakely Borough, back us up,' Police Chief Guy Salerno said, adding that people from outside the borough also attend to support the department. 'It's really amazing to see that outpouring of support.' Mayor Jeanette Acciare-Mariani founded the crime watch in 2006 after taking office, and for the past decade, the crime watch has held a Mardi Gras fundraiser to support the Police Department, she said. 'Whatever they need, we try to raise enough money for it,' the mayor said. This year's pre-Lent festivities will be Feb. 28 from 6 to 10 p.m. at Fiorelli's, 1501 Main St. in Peckville, with tickets costing $70 each, Acciare-Mariani said. The celebration will feature a New Orleans-inspired menu with beer, wine and soda included, a cash bar and live music. Mardi Gras is the crime watch's major fundraiser for the Police Department, with the biggest donation being nearly $20,000 last year to pay for K-9 Gero — a German shepherd whose name is pronounced like 'hero' but with a 'G' — his training and everything else he needed, Acciare-Mariani said. '(I'm) so very pleased that we were able to donate that to the Police Department,' she said. 'I always ask them, 'What do you want? What do you need?' I go over it with the chief, and he tells me.' Throughout the years, the Blakely Police Department has used money raised by the crime watch to pay for bullet-resistant shields, camera systems and radios for new patrol vehicles, and a new automated external defibrillator, Salerno said. 'That money has always helped the department,' he said. Most notably, the department saved money from the crime watch for a few years in anticipation of starting a K-9 unit knowing the cost of buying the dog, training for the animal and his handler, and upfitting a police vehicle would be significant, Salerno said. Gero officially joined the department in July with Senior Patrolman Brandon Walters as his handler. This year, Salerno plans to use the money to continue sustaining the K-9 program. While Gero's food and veterinary care are donated, his training and certification cost about $2,000 to $2,500 annually, the chief said. He expects to use the Mardi Gras fundraising to support the K-9 program moving forward. 'I didn't have to ask for a raise in my budget to continue with a K-9 unit,' he said. 'That's wonderful. The donations that are given to us by the crime watch are amazing.' Since adding Gero to the department last year, the German shepherd has 'made life a lot easier, especially with drug investigations,' Salerno said, explaining Blakely police no longer have to call in K-9s from other departments. While they have not had to use Gero's tracking skills yet, Salerno noted the importance of the dog's ability to track people when the borough has multiple senior-care facilities within its borders. Salerno emphasized his gratitude for the fundraising. 'Just a big thank you to all that supported the donations toward the cost of the Mardi Gras, the people that attend, I just want to personally thank all of them,' Salerno said. 'It truly makes the department, the officers, myself, know that we have community support.' The crime watch has sold close to 400 tickets so far, and while the deadline for payments was supposed to be Wednesday, Acciare-Mariani said she will continue selling tickets to those who call her at 570-383-9946.
